Introduction
Then Samuel took a stone, and set it
between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Ebenezer,
saying, “Hitherto hath the LORD helped us”. 1
Sam 7:12
The Nation of Israel had such a decisive victory over their
long time enemy the Philistines that the Prophet Samuel
took a stone to mark the Place, so that the people would
never forget what the Lord had done for them on that great
day
God had helped them, He delivered them, he saved them and
He gave them a tremendous victory.
But, not only would the people remember this great victory,
which God had given to them in an effectual Salvation, they
would also remember forever their past Failures and how
they had turned away from their God.
The word “Ebenezer”, which Samuel uses, means,
“The Stone of Help Hitherto hath the Lord helped us”
Those of us who are the Lord’s and Saved by His Sovereign
Grace, through His Redeeming Blood, we can lift our “Ebenezer”
to God in Worship and in Praise, and say,
Oh God our Help, “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us”
Here, I raise my Ebenezer, hither by thy help I come
And, I hope by thy good pleasure, safely to arrive at home.
The Believer can say, “Hitherto hath the Lord helped
me”.
Jesus, sought me when a stranger, wandering from the fold
of God,
He to Save my soul from danger interposed His precious Blood.
A Decisive Victory has been won on Mount Calvary. Jesus
has defeated the greatest Philistine of all, old Satan the
great enemy of man’s Soul.
It is finished the battle is over, it is finished and Jesus
is Lord.
Consider this place, which is called Ebenezer
It Was the Place of Former Defeat
1 Sam 7:2 And it came to pass, while
the ark abode in Kirjath-je’arim, that the time was
long; for it was twenty years: and all the house of Israel
lamented after the LORD.
This Period of time refers to an event that took place twenty-one
years before, when at this very place Israel pitched their
tents to do battle with the Philistines. They were confident
of victory, yet they lost four thousand men. Then they asked
the question,
“Why is God not with us, send for the Ark”
This is a question that men should ever ask in times of
defeat. Why is God not with us? Hophni &Phinehas, the
Priest who were the sons of Eli. brought the Ark of the
Covenant to the battle field. When the people saw it, they
gave a great shout; so loud it was that the Philistines
were afraid. But Israel lost the battle; thirty thousand
were killed, including Hophni &Phinehas the sons of
Eli.
When old Eli heard the news of Israel’s defeat and
the death of his sons, he died of a heart attack, and his
daughter in law, the wife of Phineous, gave birth to a son.
She died in childbirth, but not before she had named her
son “Ichabod” which means
“The Glory of the Lord has departed”
The Glory of the Lord had departed for a long time, and
for twenty-one years “Ichabod” could be written
over the Nation and its people, for the enemy the Philistines
sorely oppressed them.
Friends, Ichabod, could be written over many Nations of
the world today, the glory of the Lord has departed. Ichabod
can be written over the lives of many, who are continually
oppressed and defeated by man’s great enemy-- the Devil.
Why was Israel defeated and oppressed by the enemy? It was
because the Ark of the Covenant, the symbol of the presence
of God in the midst of His people, was not in its rightful
place.
Shiloh was the place to be honoured with the presence of
the Ark of God. Yet for twenty years, because of a corrupt
priesthood, the Ark was no longer the central focus in the
life of the Nation.
The people had turned away from God, to worship the idols
of Balim and Ashtaroth, the gods of man’s making. The
Lord was not in His rightful place, and sin controlled the
lives of the people
Where is the Lord in your life? Is he
in his rightful place?
Christian, is the Lord sitting and reigning on the Throne
of your heart? Or, perhaps there are now rivals to the Throne
where Jesus once ruled supreme.
Do you spend time with Him in the quiet place of prayerful
meditation? Do you fellowship as often as you should with
His people? Do you absent yourselves from the gatherings
of the Saints, as they come to the house of God to worship
and to learn more of Jesus and His Teaching?
Is Christ in control of your Time, your Talents, and your
Tithe? Or, are the False Idols of men, the gods of self,
the gods of this world drawing you away room your first
love?
Is your love for the Saviour stronger now than it was when
first you knew Him? Or has your love for Him grown somewhat
cold? Is He in control of your life, or has your Christianity
become a matter of convenience, -- a piece meal, where you
adhere to what suits you, instead of obeying the “Thus
Saith the Lord”
If any of these things are true of those
who profess to be Christians, then they are in a backslidden
condition and are living in the place of defeat, knowing
little of the Blessing and the Victory that God wants to
bestow upon us.
The Lord does not want His people to live in the place of
defeat, because in His grace He has lifted us up from the
place, of defeat where once we were the Slaves of Satan
and sin. Through Redemption, He has lifted us up to higher
ground of Faith unto Salvation.
”Hitherto has the Lord helped us” In a Spirit
of worship? we say to Him
Come Thou fount of every Blessing
Tune my Heart to sing Thy Praise
Streams of Mercy never ceasing
Calls for songs of Loudest Praise.
The Lord would challenge our hearts saying, …
My Life was given for thee, what hast thou given for me.
Dear Unsaved soul, you are living in the place of defeat,
and Satan is in control of your life. Make no mistake about
it, he has a real grip on you, and he feeds you with the
pleasures of sin to enjoy for a season. Soon you find that
you are hooked your old habits control you.
The Powers of Darkness do battle with you every day and
they are wining. Look at the man who smokes. He knows that
the cancer stick will ruin his health and be the major factor
in his death, but he still continues to smoke. Why, Satan
controls the very taste buds.
The man, who drinks on a regular basis, knows there is always
the possibility of him becoming an alcoholic, and in the
process he will destroy his liver, but he still goes on
drinking his booze. Why? Satan is in total control.
The Person, who tries a minor drug at a party, soon finds
that he or she has a major problem, for they have become
hopeless drug addict. Satan is in total control
Man in his sin is living in the place of defeat, he worships
the false gods of this world, he is under the control of
Satan, and he is one who is in need of a great deliverance.
Jesus Christ is able to deliver you, as He did of old for
Legion the man who was possessed by many demons. He has
delivered countless Millions and He can deliver you from
the stranglehold of Satan and sin.
‘This the grandest theme through the ages rung
‘Tis the grandest theme for a mortal tongue
‘Tis the grandest theme that the world e’re sung
Our God is able to deliver you.
Whether you are aware of it or not, the Lord
has been very good to you down through the years. His hand
has been upon you for good, and all that you have has come
from the giving hand of a gracious God.
He has helped you in many situations. He has under taken
for you in difficult days.
Yes you too can say, “Hitherto hath the Lord helped
me”
For Israel, Ebenezer was
The Place of Past Defeat
The Place of True Repentance
1 Sam 7:2 And it came to pass, while the ark abode in Kirjath-je’arim,
that the time was long; for it was twenty years: and all
the house of Israel lamented after the LORD
At long last, the Israelites came to their senses, and realised
what a mess they were in, they came to realise what was
wrong with their lives, and they wanted to put things right.
The people mourned and lamented. They now realised the folly
of their sinful ways, and they lamented their weakness,
helplessness, and their emptiness. They were miserable without
God in their lives and in the life of the Nation.
How miserable is the child of God who has lost the joy of
the presence of the Lord, because they are out of fellowship
with Him and He is not reigning in His rightful place in
their hearts.
Oh, how miserable the backsliders can be, when they are
not at home in the world, and out of touch with God.
But, there is a way back to God for the backslider; there
is a way back to God for the Sinner, who finds himself or
herself like the prodigal in the far country, feeding at
the swine troughs of the world. It is the road of Repentance.
Failure must be recognised, sin must be acknowledged, and
there must be a returning to the Lord.
Samuel gives Israel Instructions, and the steps that they
must take if they are to return to the path of blessing
and to know again the joy of the Lord’s presence with
them.
There must be a Change of Direction
V 3 Return unto the Lord with all your hearts”
This was not a new message that Samuel was preaching. He
had been preaching this message for twenty years, but the
trouble was, the people were not listening, and if they
were they certainly did not respond.
Sometimes the backslider is inclined to think, I could change
my ways, if I could find another Church, or to listen to
some new preacher with a different approach, and a better
ministry. Then I could change my direction in life.
Not so. The Backslider will change direction, when he listens
to the old message, which is preached in the Old-fashioned
way, which calls all men unto repentance.
Neither can the Sinful man change his direction in life,
or by seeking to turn over a new leaf, seeking to change
his habits. There must be an earnest seeking after God,
a sorrowful repentance, and a deep longing to return to
fellowship with God. Returning to the Lord with all you
heart, and seeking a close walk with God.
True repentance has a double aspect; it looks upon things
past with a weeping eye, and upon the future with a watchful
eye.
There must be a Clear Separation
V 3 then put away the strange God’s form among you”
Samuel says to the people, get rid of the False and serve
the true. Get rid of all that would hinder, all that would
seek to destroy you, and cling to the true God, the one,
who will help you, and serve Him only.
The life that is blessed of God is a separated life, for
no man can serve two Masters. Israel was defeated, because
they tried to serve two masters; the false gods and the
True.
God is a Jealous God and He will not share His Glory with
another. Now it was not that Israel had stopped worshipping
Jehovah altogether, they had not denied the articles or
their faith and the doctrines of the covenant.
They just did not live by them, in fact, they added to them,
the ways and the worship of the Canaanites. Theirs was a
mix and match religion that they had tailored made to suit
them.
This is often the Problem today. Man ever seeks to mix the
world with his Christianity, and he seeks to get the best
of both worlds. But you cannot serve the gods of the Canaanites,
and be a servant of the living God.
You cannot serve god had Mammon. What fellowship hath righteousness
with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with
darkness?
And what concord hath Christ with Belial? Or what part hath
he that believeth with an infidel?
Those, who come to saving faith in Christ, have a change
of Direction. They are clearly separated from the world.
Separated by the Grace of God, unto Holiness, Sanctified
and consecrated unto the Lord who has saved them. Like Caleb
of old, they wholly follow the Lord.
Samuel make a third Stipulation…
There must be Careful Preparation
“Prepare your hearts unto the Lord”
Give thought to your Past, the mistakes you have made, your
failures, your condition without God and His Fellowship.
Prepare your hearts unto the Lord; give thought to the Present,
the defeats in your life, the mess in which you find yourself
because of sin.
Sit down consider your ways, be like the Prodigal, come
to yourself to your senses and return to the Father the
God who loves you.
Samuel tells Israel, as the Holy Spirit would tell us today,
there must be A Careful Preparation of Heart” if there
is going to be a lasting return unto the Lord.
There must be Consecration to the Lord.
V3 Samuel says to Israel “Serve Him only. And He will
deliver you out of the hands of the Philistines”.
Serve Him only This is still the key for a happy fulfilling
life. Serve him only, put away everything that is contrary
to the mind and will of God.
Is there something in our lives that is not pleasing to
God? It would need to be put right.
A Spirit of Bitterness, an old habit that should have been
long since buried, a lack of appetite for the word of God.
A certain sin that so easily besets us and breaks fellowship.
Prepare your heart, seek the Lord, and serve Him only.
All to Jesus I surrender, all to Him I freely give
I will ever trust and serve Him in His presence daily live
All to Jesus I consecrate a new, for He is my Portion forever..
Only His Glory will I Pursue
For He is my portion forever.
Dear Unsaved Soul--
There must be a Change of Direction. The way you are travelling
is the broad road, which leads to eternal damnation.
There must be a Clear Separation. You must leave the old
way of life, those things which have become gods in your
life. You must turn to Christ for Salvation, and by His
enabling Grace, live a life that is separated unto Him and
His service.
There must be Careful Preparation
“Seek the Lord while He may be found and call upon
Him while he is near”, that you might be gloriously
saved.
Falling into sin doesn’t condemn anybody, but staying
in it does.
Illustration-- A visitor at a fishing dock asked an old
fisherman who was sitting there, “If I were to fall
into this water, would I drown?”
It was a way of asking how deep the water was, but the fisherman
had a good answer. “No” he said. Falling’
into the water doesn’t drown anybody. It’s staying
under it that does.”
A man is first startled by sin; then it becomes pleasing,
then easy, then delightful, then frequent, then habitual,
then confirmed. The man is impenitent, then obstinate, and
then. He is damned.
Ebenezer.
The Place of Past Defeat.
The Place of True Repentance.
The Place of Deep Contrition
1 Sam 7:5-6
And Samuel said, Gather all Israel to Mizpeh, and I will
pray for you unto the LORD.
And they gathered together to Mizpeh, and drew water, and
poured it out before the LORD, and fasted on that day, and
said there, We have sinned against the LORD. And Samuel
judged the children of Israel in Mizpeh.
Samuel’s Intercession is followed by the people’s
confession of their sin; there was the outward sign of real
repentance, in the pouring out of water and fasting.
Rom 10:9 that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord
Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised
him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just
to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
The Place of Effectual Sacrifice.
1 Sam 7:9-10 And Samuel took a sucking lamb, and offered
it for a burnt offering wholly unto the LORD: and Samuel
cried unto the LORD for Israel; and the LORD heard him.
This is the only way that sinful man can approach a Holy
God, and that is on the grounds of a Sacrifice, through
the shedding of blood. Samuel sacrificed a Lamb.
On Mount Calvary God sacrificed His Lamb, His Son, whose
blood was shed for your sin. You must be under the blood
of the lamb before you can be acceptable with God. God says,
“when I see the blood I will pass over you”.
The Sinner, must Pray.
Wash me, O Lamb of God, Wash me from my sin
For I Long to be like Thee, all pure within
Now let the crimson Tide, shed from thy wounded side
Be to my heart applied, and make me clean.
What happened when Samuel offered the Sacrifice on behalf
of the people? God accepted it and Victory was obtained.
10 And as Samuel was offering up the burnt offering, the
Philistines drew near to battle against Israel: but the
LORD thundered with a great thunder on that day upon the
Philistines, and discomfited them; and they were smitten
before Israel.
God gave Israel the Victory. God came to fight for His people.
He destroyed their enemies and the Presence of God was with
them again in battle.
Christian, God will give you the victory if you are walking
in fellowship with Him.
Sinner, Jesus will give you the Victory over the old habits,
He can break the chains which hold you bound and fettered,
He can set you free, He can make you clean, if you will
put your trust in Him.
There is Victory for you to enjoy in Christ, and blessings
for you to have, life abundant and eternal. The Place of
defeat became for Israel the Place of Decisive Victory.
This can happen for you.
The triumphant Christian does not fight for victory; he
celebrates a victory already won.
